The 10 best Australian wines for under $20

You don’t have to spend big to get a quality drop of wine.

These are our top picks of Australian wine, widely available for under $20. They are the sort of wines you can bring to a dinner party and not be worried that your hosts will sneer.

2012 Wickhams Road Sauvignon Blanc, Yarra Valley $19.99

Despite universal hatred of sauvignon blanc from alpha snobs in the wine industry, this wine often hits the spot. Of course there are mediocre ones, but that is something we have to deal with in all aspects of life. I’ve not chosen a fruit bomb sauv blanc – there are more than enough of those. The Wickhams Road is a savoury, nettle and steel, chargrilled lemon mouthwatering glassful of intrigue and refreshment. If you have ever ventured into the world of French sauvignon blanc, you will feel comforted with this in your glass.

2012 Balnaves of Coonawarra The Blend, Coonawarra $19.99

The blend is cabernet sauvignon, merlot and cabernet franc – and Balnaves are consistently one of the great producers of cabernet wines in Australia. It’s brambly and chocolatey, cocoa more than dairy milk, its tannins coat your cheeks with the faintest lick of eucalypt. This will also keep for a few years quite happily.

You can take these bottles anywhere.

Photograph: Alamy

2012 De Bortoli Village Pinot Noir $16.99

The “village” part of this wine’s name is a nod to the village wines of Burgundy. They are wines made with grapes from multiple villages and are usually the most inexpensive. Pinot noir under $20 is very hard to find. This is lovely, showing sweet berries, some strawberries and notes of wood. It’s a little sappy with perfume and brown spice and nice grip. Hard to beat.

2014 Leo Buring Dry Clare Valley Riesling $14.60

The Leo Buring is an Australian icon and deservedly so. It delivers such fresh, citrus classic riesling expression for less than $20. It’s thrilling, dry and wonderful.

2014 Pewsey Vale Riesling, Eden Valley, $15.65

As a category, the sub-$20 riesling section is the very best quality of any grape at this price. The entire list could be composed of riesling. The Pewsey has more aromatics than the Buring, citrus, blossom and the essence of springtime. It’s just short of breathtaking with a great finish. A beautiful wine that highlights how wonderfully underrated riesling is.

2014 La Boheme Act Four Syrah Gamay, Yarra Valley $16.99

This is great, and has so much character for a wine at this price – in fact, it could be twice as much and still be terrific. Pepper and sap, cocoa, leather and black cherries, it’s juicy and mouthwatering and lovely to smell.

2011 Tournon Maxime Chapoutier Shiraz, Victoria $15.99

The Tournon is made by French behemoth Chapoutier. Chapoutier has been making wine in collaboration with Australian winemakers for many years. The Tournon is solely owned by the Chapoutier family and is based on fruit from the Pyrenees in Victoria. This is a gorgeous light-bodied spicy shiraz. It has pepper and a little sappiness too, which offsets the heavier notes of black fruit and some sweet tobacco. This is really impressive and value for money.

NV Brown Brothers Prosecco, King Valley $17.99

Made from the prosecco grape, as all prosecco should be, the Brown Brothers is the perfect aperitivo hour bubbles. It’s soft and delicate with ripe pear and a squeeze of citrus. Great on its own or with a plate of prosciutto.

2011 d’Arenberg d’Arry’s original Shiraz Grenache, McLaren Vale $17.99

I love that such an iconic wine is under $20. It’s ripe and generous, but doesn’t mug you with excess oak and jammy fruit. It has focused dark berry fruit and notes of chocolate, the good chalky kind – perhaps chocolate liquorice log is more apt given the note of aniseed in there too. This is a lovely, generous and delicious Australian red wine.

NV Yalumba Antique Tawny $18.99

I know this is not table wine, but it is a bargain and to ignore this would be inexcusable. With an average age of 10-12 years in barrel, words fail to express its complexity. It’s a coffee, toffee, treacle glass of divinity.